Improvement in fruit-parers



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LEANDER S. WOODBURY, OE SOUTH ANTRIM, NEW HAMPSHIRE, ASSIGN OR I TO HIMSELF AND DAVID 4E. HUNT, OE SAME PLACE.

Letters lI-fatent No. 110,322, dated December 20, 1870.

lIMPROVEMENT IN FRUIT-PARERS.

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making part of the same.

To all persons to whom these presents may come Be it known that I, LEANDER S. WooDBURY, of

South Antrim, of the county of Hillsborough, of the State of New Hampshire, have invented an Improved Fruit-Parer; and do hereby declare the same to be it in a manner tending to force it off the prongs of its holder or fork and commence its voperation of paring -the fruit at that end of it next adjacent to the roots of the prongs of the fork, the pressure and action of the knife while cutting the rear half of the fruit tending to force the fruit olf the fork.

The liability of the fruit being lowered on the forkprongs, or ejected therefrom by the knife before com-v mencing to pare, as well as while rst paring a fruit, hasproved an objection with many persons to such machines, particularly when used for paring peaches or other soft fruit.

In my improved machine the mechanism for operating the knife is. so arranged and constructed as to obviate such diihcultyincident to the other machines, and to Icause the knife, while being sprung up to the fruit, to do so toward the blow or other end thereof, and then commence the paring of it, .the pressure of the knife against the fruit, especially while paring the'irst half of it, tending to crowd the fruit `endwise upon the prongs ofthe fork.

In gs. land 2 of the drawing, the fork or rotary fruit-carrier is shown at Aas fixed to an arbor, B. This arbor is supported. by a lever, (l, pivoted as shown at a, to a beveled tooth-sector, l). The said sector engages with a pinion, E, which is fixed to a Spur-gear, ll.

Both pinion and gear are applied to the lever, so as to revolve freely thereon, the gear F engaging with a pinion,'G,-ixed on the outer end ofthe fork-arbor. Y

The paring-knife is shown at H, its stock I being supported by a rod, K, which, at its lower end, is pivoted, as shown at b, tothe clamp-frame L, of which, the sectoral gear composes a part, or to'which it is xed, such frame being formed as represented, and provided with a clamp-screw, M, for aiding ln fixing themachine to a table or bench. A y The rodKextends through a slot, N, `provided with a notch or recess, c, :for catching the rod and holding the knife retracted.

arranged in the lever between its fulcrum and gears, and formed in manner as represented.

The back movement of the rod in the slot'andinto the notch is effected by a cam, O,

The knife-rod has a spring, P, applied to it and the frame, and arranged so as to draw the rod toward the fork, so as to crowd the fruit upon the fork, when the knife is sprung up to the fruit, preparatory to cutting or paring'it.

The shorter arm l ofv the lever serves to force the knife-rod out of the notche while the lever is being retra-cted.

It should be observed that the lever should be so loosely pivoted as to admit of being thrown into and out of'the said notch, as well asof being moved through 'the slot N. The knife is so arranged in its stock that the cutting-edge of the said knife is'downward, while in other machines, to which reference has hereinbefore been made, the cutting-edge of the knife has to be upward or at the top ofthe knife.

In the machines hereinbefore referred to as heretov fore used, the shorter arm of the lever performs a very different function from what it does in my improved machine; that is to say, instead of serving as a means of discharging the knife-rod out of the recess or notch c,snch shorter arm operates to force the rod into the `the knife-directly against the inner end of the front,

and with a blow. or pressure tending to force the-fruit off the fork. A

` The arrangement of the cutting-edge of the knife and the knife-operative mechanism of niy improved machine, therefore, it will be seen, differs from those' of the other machines to which allusion has beenmade, and is productive of the useful results as stated, or, in other words, it overcomes the liability of the machine to expel thevfruit from the fork, under circumstances as specified. I

Aft-er afruit may have been fixed on the fork, aforward movement is to be given to the lever, during which 4tlrefruit will be pared, and the knife-rod will be forced forward in the slot into the notch or recess e thereof, where it will be held during the operation of removing the fruit from the fork and substituting another fruit in place of the pared one, such operation heilig carried on during part of the rearward movemeut of the lever. Finally, the said lever is to be pulled back, so as to cause its shorter arm to eject the` knife-rod from the notch c, and thereby enable the knife-rod spring to force the knife up to the blow or outer end of the fruit, and in so doing crowd the fruit upon the fork.

- In my improved machine l have exhibited each of the fork-pron gs as a lever, provided lwith a bow-spring, and with'sueh spring being fixed to the fork by atenon, 7l., extending from the fork-shank through the lever and the spring, a pin, i, going through the tenen, .as shown, servinf:r to keep the prong and its spring in conjunction with the fork-shank. This method o'f making the foi-k1 do notherein claim, and is not to be considered, as making part of my invention, as any proper fork may be used to hold the fruit to the arbor of the machine.

I make no claim to a fruit-parer so constructed that its knife, preparatory to paring a fruit, is forced or sprung against it in a manner tending to force it ofIr the frnit-holder.

What I claim as my invention is` explained.

LEANDER S. VOODBURY. XVitnesses:

E. H. EDDY,

J. It. SNOW. 

